Judge in Lehman Case Charged After Domestic Incident

ByDan Slater

By now you may have seen the headline. Bankruptcy Judge James M. Peck, the man overseeing the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history, was arrested following a domestic incident with his wife at their apartment at 1060 Park Avenue, police said. According to the criminal complaint, he was charged with the following: third-degree attempted assault and second-degree harassment, according to the misdemeanor criminal complaint.

A spokeswoman for the NYPD told the Law Blog that Peck, 63, was arrested on Saturday. “He had an argument with his wife. And he smacked his wife, causing bruising to her jaw,” said the spokeswoman. A spokesman for Judge Peck declined to comment. He is overseeing the bankruptcy of Lehman Bros. Holdings. Here’s the story in the New York Post.

Charles Geyh, a judicial ethics expert at Indiana U. School of Law, says that the allegations of spousal abuse by Peck could warrant an investigation by the chief judge of the Second Circuit. “If public confidence in the official is so undermined by the [alleged] conduct then it merits at least a brief investigation,” Geyh says.

Correction: An earlier version of this post mentioned Judge Peck in connection with the Bernie Madoff case. Judge Peck initially handled the Madoff matter, but late last year recused himself. Judge Burton Lifland is now presiding over the case.

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